It Began with a Bang
by GothicCheshire
Summary: The life of a hero is one that is full of more challenges and dramas than could ever be believed, and in a world with a time limit, Megamind may not be able to stop it from burning to the ground.
1. Falling

_I am so so so so sorry for the length, it makes me feel awful to throw out something so short, but I beg you to give it a chance. Thank you all. I promise it will be longer later, I merely fell in love with the style of beginning from the movie. I had to do it._  
...

Metro City was burning.

The sounds of people screaming, pleading, filled the ears of a man, an alien, who was once again falling to the pavement far, far below him, his thin and lanky arms and legs pin wheeling through the air. Megamind, the new hero of Metro City, was falling into the heat of what felt like the apocalypse. Only there were two horseman instead of four.

He could feel the heat scorching the leather of his costume, his cape sizzling and smoking. He frantically unhitched it, watching it waft up in the heated breeze before catching on fire, descending in ashes and smoke to the ground far below. Far, far below, the pavement and concrete below him that he knew would be hungry, but the fire would devour everything else. Flesh would melt, blood would evaporate, and he would be gone. A charred husk of his former beautiful self.

The blue alien could feel the liquid streaming from his face evaporating in the overheated air, the breaths he took fire in his lungs.

Yet as he fell he couldn't help but smile, a slightly twisted, vicious smile, a smile that could have been used in his days as a supervillain, and it would have terrified the world. But the smile fell from his face as the heat continued to grow; he couldn't help but remember how this had all began, as much as he did not wish to. He laughed then, a crazy, twisted laugh, the bruises, cuts and aches in his body causing him to fall into a coughing fit. Finally he quieted, feeling the leather of his outfit melt into his skin, burning him in places he had been burned in before, and allowed himself to quietly reflect, his eyes closing and that smile smoothing into something less animal-like, into something more sad and melancholy.

_How did this begin? How did it all begin? This really doesn't seem possible, does it? It has to be a nightmare, yes? Some sort of awful dream that I shall wake up from and everything will be alright. It has to be alright. It has to be. _

_You've done a wonderful job though, you've done a wonderful job, oh my, you've certainly managed to destroy the city better than I ever could, but that was your plan, wasn't it? Be better than I ever was…ever could be. You knew what I was, you knew that it wasn't in my nature to be a villain, and I never did. Well fought, old friend, well fought… _

_But I suppose all of you are all wondering how this happened, what could possibly have defeated my amazingly powerful and handsome self, aren't you? Well… Far be it for me to leave you wondering as you read about me plummeting to my death in an inferno. Besides, our lives are supposed to flash before our eyes, are they not, before we go? Well, no time like the present. _

_It started…four…maybe five days after the museum dedicated to me was opened. I can't quite believe it. It was all so…peaceful back then… I believe it truly was, as hopelessly poetic as it may be:_

_The calm before the storm._


	2. To

_Here we go people the next chapter. Sorry it took a while, I have several stories in the works, but I promise I'll update REASONABLY often. I hope... May you enjoy it! Roxanne's character is giving me a bit of trouble, but I'm working on it. Hope you enjoy. This will start slow. I do apologize, but building a story up to such a HUGE climax takes pacing and timing. I promise to weave something together which shall live up to the hype that was created by the first chapter, but do understand. This takes work. _  
...

_**BANG**_

The sudden sound that split the silence of the lair was reacted to with near frantic worry on the part of a single person. Minion, his robotic gorilla's body running to where the loud sound came from, nearly slipped in his near frantic run to the room his boss and friend was in. He probably would have, had one of Megamind's brain bots rebalanced him. The slippery state of the catwalk due to the nearly frantic cleaning they had done was proving hazardous to his health, and for an alien fish that was protected mainly by an upside-down fish bowl…that wasn't a good thing. The brain-bots were just as worried as he was, he could tell, and it was not comforting.

He threw the dark wooden door open, a loud exclamation of, "Sir!" leaving his lips as he tried to spot the elusive alien. It was often amazing to the fish how his master, blue as he was and almost always extravagantly dressed, was often so hard to find. He finally spotted him crawling out from under his desk, rubbing his oversized head and muttering under his breath. As soon as he saw Minion he froze, looking up at him with wide and shocked green eyes, and finally cleared his throat.

"My apologies, Minion, did I startle you?"

"I heard the sound of your head hitting the desk from downstairs! What were you doing?"

"Oh, I dropped something; I went to pick it up and...did you know we had rats?"

"Rats, sir?" Minion had not known. It certainly did not surprise him, considering they lived in an abandoned warehouse, and cleanliness had never been all that important, but he had no fondness for the little vermin, especially not when they lived near him.

"Yes, rather large ones, too." Megamind confirmed.

"Did…they startle you, sir?"

Megamind jolted upright, in obvious offense, only to hit his head once again on the desk, Minion wincing at the sound. The grumbled words uttered under the blue aliens breath were not something Minion was interested in hearing.

"No, no, of course they didn't startle me, I am a superhero, formally a _supervillain_, why would I be _startled_ by _rats_?" Megamind finally spluttered out, crawling farther away from the desk and shooting it a venomous glare. "However, I am a little worried about a certain _reporter's_ opinion of them."

Minion blinked, and then his eyes widened. "What are we going to do about them, sir?"

Megamind paused, obviously thinking, and then struck a heroic pose and stared off into the distance. "Feed them to the alligators!"

There went the superhero pose…

"Sir…is that maybe a bit harsh? They are living creatures after all…"

"Yes, that is true Minion, but so are my alligators. They need food as well, you know, and the rat that ran over my hand was chewing on the wires…" The hissed statement made Minion understand instantly.

"Well, in that case, I'll get the traps."

"I'll get the brain bots on it!" Megamind shouted out, pointing a finger to the ceiling dramatically and running out of the room with his cape fanning out behind him in a black stream. They had found that he had begun to have what amounted to an allergic reaction to the cape from Metro Man, so they had went for the regular black. He had been disappointed, but Minion was working on it.

Megamind and Minion had just finished taking care of what amounted to most of the rats. Megamind had lifted them by their tails with his black clad hand and was laughing triumphantly when Roxanne Ritchi walked in, took one look, and proceeded to scream. The blue headed alien and his sidekick jerked in twin surprise before letting out a yell of their own. The rats swung by their tails lazily.

Unsurprisingly to either Roxanne or Minion, Megamind stopped screaming first, his inability to cease talking the root cause of his usually very quick recoveries. "Blast it Minion, I told you she wouldn't like them!" He shouted out, and Minion ceased his own yelling, Roxanne stopping to breathe as a mini-argument broke out between the two with lots of gesturing and sentences that began with 'code'. The rats were still there, and the limp way they swung around and flopped made Ritchi want to vomit.

"Guys…" She started, her voice at a slightly higher pitch than normal, and it was that squeak that made them stop, looking at her in concern. When she knew she had their attention she continued. "Why do you have a bunch of dead rats?"

"There was an infestation of them here." Minion answered automatically, blinking in slight confusion when that seemed to increase her panic. She backed away, eyes wide and frantically flitting from side to side, looking as though she had seen a ghost.

"There were rats _here_?" The high-pitched terror in her voice made the two men standing before her blink.

"Wait…you aren't…_afraid_ of rats, are you?" Megamind asked and he seemed both so surprised and so nonplussed that Roxanne became instantly defensive.

"Well, they're gross…and icky, and they spread diseases…and…and…"

"You are? Now wait, let me get this straight, I kidnapped you and held you hostage off and on for years, threatening your life with everything from ray guns to alligators…and _you're afraid of __**rats**_?" The absolute incredulity in his voice coupled with the shocked and wild expression in his eyes, the limp bodies in his hand yet again wiggling and flopping, made her eyes widen and she took a step back.

"Yes, yes, I'm afraid of rats, will you get rid of them, please?" Roxanne shouted out, wincing back, and this was of course when the brain bots decided to reveal they had captured more of the pests, dropping them in front of the terrified and highly frazzled brunette. The resultant scream was loud, piercing, and so shrill that Minion was surprised it didn't shatter his bowl.

The two of them hurriedly threw the door named 'exit' open, practically shoveling the rats into it; the resultant happy sounding growls let them know their gift had been enjoyed. They shoved it closed and hurriedly worked on comforting her, Megamind definitely out of his element. He flailed and worried, biting at his lip and offering her everything from a drink to the moon if it would help her feel better.

She finally got a hold of herself, taking a deep breath and realizing with a kind of jolt that Megamind had actually finally pulled her into a tentative and rather shaky hug. He was trembling, his every muscle tensed. Their relationship had been as shaky and tentative as his hug was, Megamind had had his torn out once by her, she knew, and he had been wary of having it happen again. He was as rare in taking the initiative in showing signs of his affection as he was in admitting that he was wrong.

He was waiting, she realized, and she finally wrapped her arms around him. "Thank you, you're my hero." The line, corny as it was, was also something she knew he desperately needed. She let her chin rest in the crook of his neck, smiling gently as her boyfriend relaxed, the tension flowing out of him. And as always when he was relaxed and confident, he began to ramble. Roxanne watched with amusement on her face as the blue super began moving from point to point, removing his gloves as he went and smiling widely, a never-ending stream of chatter leaving his lips.

Minion watched the man he had seen grow from just a baby and smiled. Roxanne was great for him, wonderful for the boy who had been so confused and lost, for the man he had become. He couldn't help but smile and back away slowly, grinning at them both. He left them alone, closing the door softly behind him. He'd get refreshments.  
…

All in all, it was a good day, Megamind had forgotten he didn't have his gloves on and burned his fingers attempting to help Minion set the table, but Roxanne had kissed the purple and burnt fingers better. He had still coated them with cooling salve later, though when she wasn't looking. All in all, Megamind fell to sleep on his couch happy. He had yet to grasp the concept of a bed, and he had been so busy lately they had not had time to shop, but it was alright. He had been sleeping on chairs, couches, and floors his whole life; the sudden need of a bed had never quite struck home.

Minion checked on his charge with a small smile, clicking the light off and turning the TV off as well, shaking a blanket out and covering him with it. He snuggled into it automatically, making Minion grin widely. He had seen him grow up from just a baby; there were times when he was certain that he couldn't have cared more for him should he be his actual father.

The thought of that man made Minion shrink into himself slightly, his mind dancing away from the topic. He never wished to think about that, never consider the circumstances surrounding their launch to Earth. He was older than Megamind; some would consider the fact to be surprising that the one who took the orders from the other would be the oldest, but that was his job, take care of him and adhere to their commands. It was a job that was admired and one he had been lucky to get.

The fish knew that, due to his age, he knew and remembered more about that time than he hoped Megamind ever would. The fear that he would was always hovering at the back of his mind, but he didn't know how it would ever happen. Even Megamind had been too young for that, and he recalled what it was like to be eight days old.

His eyes closed and he gave a brief sigh.

"Night, sir…pleasant dreams…"

With that he walked away.  
….

In another part of Metro City, in another lair that belonged to yet another person who had found his calling, a man stared at his reflection in the mirror. He examined the lines that were etched into his face, tugging at a limp strand of hair and looking at the bottle in his hand with narrowed eyes. A sigh and a glare later the bottle was popped open.

He read the instructions a few times and finally began working on following them. When he looked back up the damnable gray hair was all gone, covered in a shiny new black that he hadn't been in years. Was he always this vein, he wondered to himself, amazement and shock in his mind. He had always thought that Megamind was the conceited one, yet he wasn't the one who went out and bought himself hair dye!

Granted, he didn't even have hair, but he could have bought….a wig…or something... He chucked the bottle into the trash and left the bathroom, practically storming. It didn't matter. It was just hair, right?

Stupid, useless, messy hair.

But he couldn't look at himself in the mirror any more.

His eyes closed and he rubbed a hand through his still damp hair, running it down his face and into the beard that he had let grow. He plopped onto his white sofa and glared at the world in general. But he spared a glance to one room in particular, the look wary and disgusted. His head fell back onto the back of his couch, his blue eyes barely flickering around to view his surroundings. He knew what were there, souvenirs from his battles with Megamind, his guitars, his speakers… He'd seen it all before. But he still had his music, and that was what was important.

Propping his feet up on the table he leaned back farther, flicking the TV on, watching through narrowed eyes, finally rolling them back into his head.

Metro Man, Music Man, felt old. He felt old, and even his purpose, his calling was no longer helping him handle that feeling. He had nothing left.

His head lolled back onto the couch, a sigh puffed out angrily. He grumbled quietly under his breath, rolling his eyes. He really was tired of this feeling, this inadequateness and uselessness that followed him everywhere. Oftentimes he knew that it was unnecessary. But other times?

He scoffed, rolling his eyes, and sighed, running his hand through his hair.

He had left to gain his purpose, and he had finally found it…but it had…dwindled…failed.

His eyes drifted over to a door that was mostly hidden and out of the way, looking at it through narrowed eyes, the feeling that it evoked was one of pain, and even more of desperation. It really shouldn't have surprised him that he was feeling so hollow when the main reason for it was right in that room he reflected, but there wasn't much he could do about it. But that didn't stop him from cursing it.

He cursed it, cursed everything to do with that room, with what was inside it, with what it told him.

Why on Earth had he done that? Why had he looked? He wasn't surprised really; he had been a boy at the time, what boy wouldn't have questioned who he was? So he had finally done it. He had asked

He wished that he hadn't, cursing his childhood curiosity. He had grown up in luxury, knowing he was special, knowing he would be important. It was with this thought in mind that he had chosen to be a superhero. A force of justice, a force of good.

Well…he had discovered he was a force for something. Damn did he wish otherwise, though… Why had he looked?

It didn't matter though. It really truly didn't matter, though, did it? No. No it didn't.

He had time left though…he had time. He could ignore it a little longer.

So that was precisely what he did.


	3. Your

_Like most people, I'm taking the names that Ms. SilverSheperd came up with, and once again, I am sorry for the rather slow build up, understand that I am going to get there. Thank you for reviewing, and I hope you like it._  
...

Megamind stared out at the crowd that was gathered in front of him with a mixture of giddy excitement and terror. He had no idea why he had allowed Roxanne to beat him into doing it. This was not what he had wanted his afternoon to look like. He knew cameras, he understood them, he could talk to them happily and contentedly…

People?

No. Not so easy, not so comfortable.

He took a deep breath, looking out over people, lots and lots of people. How on Earth had Metro Man done it? He had dedicated the museum, he knew that, this wasn't that much harder, but it was supposed to be somber, supposed to be...meaningful. Why couldn't she have just interviewed him for the cameras and gotten it over with?

The Mayor finished his speech with gusto, heavy applause following his flourish. Megamind recognized his cue and walked forward, standing at the podium with a heart that was going a mile a minute and a feeling of abject terror sweeping over him. He looked at the speech he had prepared, clearing his throat, looking back up at the crowd, and closed his eyes, breathing through his nose.

"Dear people of Metros….Metro City; it is with…great apology and remorse that I stand in front of you today. You know me as Megamind, up until little less than a month ago, the Dastardly Handsome master of all Villainy. Now, while I am still Dastardly Handsome, I am no longer the Master of Villainy. I come to you today, not as The Master of Villainy, or as Megamind, but as Syx. I come to you in apology and humiliation."

The exaggeration on his part, the slightly wild movements and overdramatic voice and method made it seem less creditable; but somehow, even with the nearly overzealous talking on his part, they believed him. It could have been because he was working so damn hard to pronounce all of his words right, but it also might have been something in his eyes. He took another breath and gave a slight smirk.

"I have agreed to become your protector. I have promised to become your protector. I will not, and cannot be Mark Phillips, and I am sorry for this fact. I am aware that the words will seem empty: but I did not mean to kill him. I will do my best to atone for my misdeeds, and while I may never reach that level, while I may never be able to rise to that pedestal that he left, I will try. I swear, I will never cease to try, and I will do my best to be the hero that this city deserves."

The cheers and applause that exploded from the people in front of him made Syx stare, his eyes wide and disbelieving, a slow smile creeping up his mouth. He would never get used to this, he knew. He would never get used to it, their applause and adulation.

Then the Mayor came over, clapping him on the back, and Megamind flinched back horribly, coming into a defensive posture. The sudden silence was deafening, the Mayor's expression unoffended, but concerned.

Megamind realized he hadn't meant to startle or hurt him and relaxed. "My apologies, Mayor Grayfield. I…am still rather uncomfortable with physical contact, growing up in a prison can do that to you!" he laughed, a slightly evil chuckle that was stifled almost immediately. "My apologies, I haven't quite gotten the laugh down yet."

The balding man laughed, nodding. "Quite alright, I should know better than to sneak up on you. Ladies and Gentlemen, let us grace our savior with another round of applause; he has taken time out of his already busy day to grant us this speech, and we should let him know how much we appreciate it."

They did so, and Megamind ducked out of the area quickly with a helpless bow, nearly running into Minion as he managed to get away. The fish had a look of joy, his large eyes had widened, and his lower lip was trembling, the look of a person who was trying not to cry. Honestly, Megamind did not know why he put on such a show; he was a fish, in a bowl of water, he couldn't cry.

"I'm so proud of you, sir!" He squeaked out. Megamind smiled at him, accepting the bone-crushing hug as his due, and laughing.

"They liked me, they actually liked me!" The exclamation, the disbelief and the joy in the words that were spoken made the fish grin all the wider.

"They didn't know you, sir."

A moment later the mayor reappeared, walking up to them easily. "So, Megamind, Minion, I wished to thank you once again. Also, your speech really was decent. You seem to have a better grasp of the hero thing than you ever did for being a villain." He laughed, realizing it might have seemed like an insult a second later and moving to take it back.

Megamind waved it off though, shaking his head. "It's funny, but I think you're right… It's probably because I felt that I had no choice. You know, you land in a prison, everyone hates you, and seems to think you are merely there for evil, and so well, you sort of follow along, right?" He laughed then, clapping him on the back, and then turned to Minion. "I believe it is time to go home, Minion. We have a lot to do today. Thank you Mayor, it has…been interesting, and I am sorry about your office."

"It's not alright yet, but we'll see how this goes. You might actually manage to work off all those life sentences you have…"

"Yeah…here's to hoping. Thank you."

With that they left.

Roxanne came up to the Mayor a moment later, her reporter clothes, neater and more business oriented than her usual, still on, her camerawoman (she wasn't risking a repeat performance from the last cameraman) following after her. She had stowed the camera, but the black-haired woman who kept it up in a bun couldn't help but follow. Her thin wire-framed glasses reflected the afternoon light. If there was one complaint Roxanne could think of, it was the fact that she was always chewing gum.

"Miss. Ritchi, I was hoping to be able to talk to you." Grayfield smiled at her warmly, he was a tough man, and also one who was gentle and forgiving. However, Roxanne never trusted him; he was too good of a politician.

"Sure, I have time. I suppose the reason for waiting so long is because it's off the record?"

Grayfield's smile was a little les warm, but he nodded. "Miss. Ritchi, you are a woman who has tamed a monster. You know it, I know it. But he is still, somewhere in there, a monster. He may change his dress and manner, but he will always be a monster. However, you are living proof that monsters can be tamed, and I think you for this fact. You have saved us, Miss. Ritchi, not Megamind."

Roxanne was speechless, but what part of her wanted to defend her boyfriend was silenced, staring into those eyes she was unable to do anything but shrug, look off to the side and look back at him. Then she found her spark. "If he was ever a monster, Mr. Mayor, he was a monster of our own creation." Her eyes glinted, and the man sighed, nodding.

"So he was." He pierced her with sharp eyes. "Know this, and pass it on to your boyfriend. Tell him to keep his nose clean. I know that he will have difficulty in transitioning, and I am willing to give him all the time he needs, so long as he makes that transition." He looked at her closely, and then gave a nod.

"That is all I have to say, thank you once again." With that he left.

Her camerawoman, Jess, turned to look at Roxanne with a raised eyebrow and a quick snap of her gum.

"Well…that went well."

"That is certainly one way to put it."

"Eh, the blue guy will do fine."

"You think so?"

"Have no other choice, do I?" Jess asked, and with another snap of her gum she began walking off.

They went their separate ways, Jess to her apartment, Roxanne to her car, and to a certain blue-headed alien's lair. She figured some congratulations were certainly in order.  
….

She entered the lair quietly, but at the almost explosion of loud classic rock that blasted out at her as she opened the door, she figured she needn't have bothered. A few of the brain bots flew over to her, recognizing her enough to buzz up to her, rubbing against her as she pet them, a wide smile on her face. She figured not even getting bit by them would ruin her good mood, _he had actually done it_. She listened to the ecstatic and almost evil laughter that spilled throughout the lair, shaking her head as she climbed the stairs, following the voices to the catwalk and to another room.

The laughter and joy filled voices stopped after two things happened. The first thing was a loud, "Whoop!" from Megamind, and the second was a loud crash. After that she heard a loud and horrified:

"Sir?"

The music stopped. She ran.

She threw the door open in a panic, nearly tripping over herself in her haste to get there. When she realized that the only thing that seemed to be off was the fact that Megamind was clutching his head in pain, the chair underneath him the obvious cause, and one of the wheels spinning idly, she relaxed. Not because he was hurt, but because of the large and slightly dopy smile that was on his face. The next moment he was laughing and she relaxed against the doorframe in relief.

"Minion, that was amazing, it was amazing! They…they like me!"

"Of course they like you," Roxanne interrupted, smiling gently; the two aliens looked over to her in surprise that soon turned into welcoming smiles. "You happy that I made you give that speech?" she asked with a grin.

Megamind stood up carefully, still rubbing at his oversized head with one hand as he came up to her, a wide smile on his mouth and a light in his eyes that she couldn't help but love.

"Yes, yes I am, thank you. Thank you so much, you…you changed everything for me," he said, and there was such an amazed quality in his voice that she couldn't help but blush.

"Yeah, well…I didn't so much change it as I did give you a reason. You took the initiative to change all on your own."

Megamind looked about ready to burst and eventually did so, laughing his heart out as he picked her up and spun her, holding her close to him. She couldn't say she had ever liked being manhandled in such a manner, but it was worth it just because of how happy he was.

Minion thanked her as well, a small wink tossed her way for good measure when Megamind had his back turned. But eventually Roxanne couldn't help it, she had to ask.

"So, you're name's actually Six?"

"Ah…well…yes…did you not know?" He appeared crushed for a moment and then rebounded almost as quickly. "No, of course not, how could you have known? Yes, I was named Syx."

"You're pronouncing it funny, how do you spell it?"

"Um, well…there's a 'y' instead of an 'i'."

"Why?"

"Because when I was younger I got my vowels mixed up, shoot me. As for why it's a number… I grew up in a prison; we didn't have names, only numbers. I was 00000006. So they merely called me 'Six', which I eventually turned to 'Syx'."

"And Metro Man's name is Mark…" She laughed. "You are aware of the fact that not a lot of people knew that, aren't you?"

"Well, I figured I shouldn't call him by his title. Too insensitive, I figured." He shrugged, looking around at the room, at anything but her.

"It was a good move."

"You think so?"

"I do."

He smiled at her widely, and turned to look at Minion, then back to her. "Would you care to join us in our celebrations?"

"I would love to."

A voice they weren't expecting cleared his throat and they whirled around to stare at a slightly sheepish looking Music Man.

"How…how did you get in here, how did you know where my lair even was?" an awestruck Megamind shouted out, looking at him in absolute shock, examining his ceiling for any holes.

"Well…I was just flying around, above the clouds so no one would see me, and I just happened to hear a little buddy of mine. I heard your speech by the way. I'm really proud of you; that was brilliantly executed, very nice job. You don't mind if I ask to celebrate with you, do you? I figured it would be a good way to sort of…pass the baton on, so to speak…"

Megamind hesitated, both Minion and Roxanne giving him wary looks, watching as the eyebrows furrowed, and he looked at the wary-looking man for a moment, and then broke into a wide smile.

"No, not at all, please. I actually had a few things I wished to ask you about anyway, this saves me the trip!" He laughed, and accepted the clap on the back from the ridiculously strong man with grace. "By the way...did you do something to your hair?"

The question was taken with laud laughter, and a smirk followed by a shrug, and they moved on quickly.

Minion continued watching Mark closely for the rest of the night, but none of them aside from the man himself noticed. It was only after he had left that he allowed himself to sigh. It seemed that he couldn't even visit his old nemesis turned ally without being reminded.

He was really getting sick of that.


	4. Death

_Well my wonderful readers/reviewers/lurkers, we're getting there. I wish a happy thanksgiving to all of you, and I hope that it's a good day. Don't get overstuffed on turkey!_

_Oh, by the bye, don't think I've done this before, so I shall now: I do not own Megamind, I shall not own Megamind, and this is for no profit aside from reviews, and my own amusement. _  
...

The peace of the early morning was dashed aside, albeit apologetically, when the rebuilt and hopefully improved giant robotic body suit went through the motions of testing. People leaned out their windows to watch, curious now that they knew he would not attempt to harm them. He was careful not to hit any of the buildings, and they had been warned that he would be testing his machinery, apologizing for any noise, but being unable to help it.

They hadn't expected the robot to be back again. The black and blue color scheme was still in effect, but some of the more lethal weapons had been traded for others that, while still able to stop a person in their tracks, were not quite as dangerous. Megamind preformed various tucks and rolls, throwing a few punches and kicks, testing the reaction time, the Black Mamba Mark II clothing him. He had liked the cape too much to totally scrap it, and after consulting with the people they had agreed to let him keep the black and buckles. They had vetoed the spikes though.

The robot twisted and lunged, its maneuverability as unlimited as he had hoped, but there was a slight jerkiness in its movements that he didn't like. He decided that he would have to fix that, humming one of his several favorite songs under his breath, rather unwilling to give up the feeling of power that came with being inside your own personal giant robot. He wiggled his fingers, watching as the machine did the same, his certainty in the larger movements focused on the small. A few closing of the fingers and opening them later he moved to the other hand.

Yes, there was room for improvement. That was good enough for him. The sudden voice that filtered through the sound system, Minion's voice, also led him to the decision to go home. He had shown off a bit, received some applause, and was making people happy to see him instead of fearful. There were a few wary ones, but Megamind had expected that. He was aware of how he had treated them, he did not expect for them to suddenly be singing his praises. Even he was not that egotistical and naïve, and he knew that he was naïve. He was smart enough, wise enough, to know that much.

The sudden shout from below him made him freeze with one foot in the air and hurriedly look down. He nearly had a heart attack at realizing he had almost stepped on a small boy, his mother on top of him, her position indicating that she had tripped trying to run him out of the way. He put his foot down in an area less likely to cause pain and hurriedly opened the hatch after putting the robots arm down in a way conductive to getting to the ground. Sliding down it he hurriedly helped the woman and her child upright, apologizing nearly frantically.

The blonde haired woman looked at him with fear in her eyes and clutched her son to her tighter, listening as he babbled and berated himself. It was only when the woman realized exactly how close the blue-skinned alien was to bursting into hysterics that she touched him on the arm gently. He looked up at her through wide and horrified green eyes and she gave rather awkward looking half-shrug, her eyes still terrified, but a bit of the distrust gone.

"It's my fault…I should have had a better grasp of my son. I knew, I knew that he wanted to talk to you, I just turned my back for a moment and he was running into the street in front of you. I panicked, so I ran, and I tripped. I…I thought you were going to step on us, I didn't even notice I was screaming until you froze." She was staring at him with widened brown eyes that were slowly filling with tears, an effect of shock and hysteria. The small boy had yet to decide if he wanted to cry or not, his lower lip trembling, more of a reaction to his mothers fears than anything else.

Megamind bit his lip, unsure what to do, how to react, his eyes flitting up and down the street; very few random passerbies were out due to the time, a fact which he was very grateful for.

"Mommy, I'm sorry…" The quiet voice broke the temporary silence, the sound of the boy near-tears enough to make the mother shush him, hold him closer and look at Megamind hesitantly.

"You don't mind if he does talk to you, do you? I know you're probably busy, but hey, you did almost step on us, right? And it's not your fault, you had no way of knowing, I'm pretty sure your view isn't all that great up in there… I should have known that he would run out to try and see you, you are his hero after all…"

Those little words, those simple little words made Megamind feel as though an explosion went off in his chest. He blinked, looking at the small boy who was still clutched protectively in his mother's arms and smiled. It was a goofy smile, something shell-shocked and amazed, and he cleared his throat. "So, you really wanted to talk to me, huh? What's your name?"

The small boy with wide brown eyes was placed on the ground and looked up at him shyly, before grinning at him. "Luke!" he shouted out. The pride he had in his name was obvious, and Megamind couldn't help but smile back, crouching down to his level, leather groaning.

"That's a very nice name, Luke, how old are you?"

The boy held up five fingers with a wide grin, only to get swatted on the back of his small blonde head playfully by his mom, causing him to giggle. "He's only four; he'll be five next week."

"Oh, well, four is a perfectly fine age. You'll be five soon, no need to rush. Now, what did you want to ask me?"

"You're an alien, right?"

"Yes, I'd say I am; you don't see many humans wandering around with oversized blue heads, do you?"

He giggled, and asked another question: "Are there any more like you?"

The happy feeling vanished, his eyes closing, and his body stiffening, all in a matter of seconds. The mother picked her child up, clutching him to her and apologizing to him. Megamind cleared his throat and waved it off.

"Well… There aren't any more like me because…there was this…black hole. My entire planet was sucked into it. I am the only one of my kind left."

The boy seemed saddened by this, but it wasn't the type of sadness that his mother was exhibiting, the horrified expression, the pained look on her face. He was too young to understand, he grasped it in a vague way, understanding that it was an awful thing, but not quite grasping the magnitude of it. This was why he asked another question.

"What did you call yourselves? I'm human, yeah? What are you?"

Megamind didn't answer. If the truth was told, he _couldn't_ answer. His mouth opened, only to slowly shut, his green eyes widening at the sudden realization that he didn't _know_. He remembered snatches of conversation, what he recognized as his native language, but his species? In fact, he didn't even remember his parent's names.

It was such a strange realization. He had never really thought of it, sort of looked at the knowledge that he did not know his parents, or his people as fact. But as he thought about it, actually truly thought about it, he found that it hurt. He blinked at the small boy, his green eyes lost and his expression totally blank.

"I don't know."  
….

Megamind was still considering it when he got ready for bed that night and when he woke up. He was thinking about it off and on for the entire week.

There were so few things that got to Megamind that when something actually did, the people close to him noticed, but it did not happen as fast as some people would expect. He fidgeted, scrambled, stayed up long nights and was constantly tinkering, new inventions springing up from his mind and twitching fingers.

He made certain to keep it as friendly to his new hero image as he could, but he sometimes found himself slipping. He would be in the middle of the creation of a new ray gun only to realize what he was doing, and have to scrap it. Heroes did not use ray guns that erased the targets memory. But this was a common occurrence. He often did such things, so that wasn't the key sign that there was something wrong.

It was how quiet he was. He wouldn't laugh, listen to music, reply to Minion with more than a few sentences, which was always a bad sign, and that would be when the alien fish knew he had to talk to him.

Syx sighed, examining his new blueprints for the twentieth time, rubbing at his eyes and resting his head in his hands. Minion walked over to his boss, sitting down beside him, waiting patiently. The fish knew that he would speak eventually; it was just the way Megamind was. He couldn't stay silent for long.

"What was my species called?"

The question came so far out of left field, Minion made a double take. "Sir?"

"What was my species called? What were my parent's names, heck, did my people even _have_ names? Do you know, Minion?"

The fish was silent. In all of the years that he had lived with the man, he had never really asked about his planet. He understood why, the blue-skinned alien had found himself in a prison where they kept him as busy as it was possible to keep him, he had went to school in a place where he had thought he could fit in, and tried so desperately to, and then he had found that he couldn't. He had spent time nursing obsessions as well as his wounds. It was unsurprising that he had never so much as even considered it. He was always mellow around the time when he remembered coming to Earth, but he was usually so…busy, so absorbed in what it was he was doing that he had never truly thought about it.

Who wanted to remember the planet that they didn't even know? The planet with the people who set him off to live in a world that, for the rest of his life until little over two months ago, hated him? What was the point in it?

Megamind stared at Minion with pleading green eyes, the realization of just what he had been doing sinking into his very bone marrow.

"What…what brought this on, sir?"

"I almost stepped on a mother and child today."

"Sir!"

"I didn't, Minion, but that reminds me, we need to insert sensors into that machine that will let me know when someone is underneath it. I do not wish for a repeat performance, even if it led to a nice conversation."

"Sir?"

"He called me his hero, Minion. I was his hero, someone to be admired and looked up to, he was four years old and he adored me! But he also asked a question, one that I realized I didn't know the answer to. What am I, Minion? What was my people, why did they send me to Earth? And I know that they sent me to Earth, Minion, because they spoke English to me. It was something that bugged me for so long, why Earth? Why not some other planet? But I suppose I will never know. Minion, what am I?"

The alien fish was silent, looking around with quiet uncertainty and finally straightened up. "I can't tell you, sir."

Megamind blinked. "What?"

"I can't tell you. I am not allowed."

"What? But…but, why?"

"Because they wished to tell you for themselves, sir"

"'They', who, my parents?" the alien questioned.

"That is correct, sir."

"But, but they can't, Minion, they're dead!"

"That is correct, sir."

"Then how can they tell me if they're dead? That makes no sense, its impossible! Dead people can't talk, Minion, that's why they can't tell tales."

"Sir, your parents wanted to tell you, they told me not to explain."

"But…why? How?"

"Because they felt that it was their right as your parents. As for how, how did you get here, sir?"

"I walked."

"No, not here, _here_, this planet."

"My pod, but that's…" Megamind's eyes widened, opening his mouth, only to shut it again. "My pod?"

"That is correct, sir." The fish watched with eyes that could almost be described as haunted as Megamind hurriedly went to the invisible car that had been repaired. He just hoped that when he learned the truth, he wouldn't hate him for not telling.  
…..

Music Man stared at the closed door in front of him with hollow eyes, his fingers pressed against the wood, his forehead leaning against it.

"Alright, alright. You've haunted me long enough, I'll go in. I'll look again." His fingers grasped the doorknob, slowly twisting it open, the fingers trembling. Mark shoved it open slowly, the blackness of the room beyond making him hesitate before entering, one hand fumbling for the light switch.

When the light clicked on he squinted against the glare, sighing as he looked at the object that was illuminated. His pod stood there in all its golden and finished glory and he could only sigh.

A moment later he blinked, listening closely, his eyes narrowed slightly as he looked around, the sudden realization that there was something beeping making him start. He hadn't noticed it before, which shocked him; usually he could hear even the slightest sound, but that was when he realized that it was quieter than he had first thought. He narrowed his eyes, trying to identify where the sound was coming from, and then his eyes fell on that pod.

He felt himself tense as he slowly walked forward, leaning over the object that was beeping, and then his eyes widened.

"No…"


	5. Sucks

_Sorry for the wait people, but it's extra long to make up for it. Enjoy!_  
...

Megamind stood silently in front of the one building that he had never wanted to have to enter again with his heart thudding against his ribs, feeling nothing short of sick. The blue alien bit at his lower lip gently and finally shook himself out of his daze. He straightened and released his lip, putting one foot in front of the other as he walked forward, keeping his shoulders back and not looking side to side until he reached the guard house. The gray-haired and slightly weathered man inside of it took one look at him and straightened up, his look not one of menace, but honest curiosity.

"I thought you wouldn't be back here if you could help it." The guard gave him a slight smile, one that was more smirk than anything else, but had the friendly air of teasing. The man looked familiar, but it took a moment to place him, when Syx did, he almost welcomed the feeling of warmth that the man brought. He had been one of the guards when the alien had been a boy, and he had always been nice. Megamind believed the man's name was Fredrick.

"And on any other day I would agree with you." Megamind listened to Fredrick's laughter and finally sighed. "May I speak to the Warden, please?"

"The Warden, sure, but you kinda have to go in."

Megamind hesitated, looked at the giant and looming prison and looked back at the guard, "But I don't want to!"

His only response to that for a long time was more laughter, all the while Megamind picked at his gloves and finally the man sighed. "Look, I'm sorry, I just find this all kinda surreal. You sure you're feeling alright?"

"I'm fine, I just…I have to ask him something."

"Is it about why you were kept in the prison instead of the orphanage?"

"No, wait…what?"

"Yeah, we had been thinking…'what kinda place is a prison to raise a child in?' and then we actually started paying attention. You were blue, kid. You were blue, had an oversized head, and the intelligence that no man would ever be able to acquire in their entire lifetime when you were barely two years old! You were threatening, something we hadn't seen before. Keeping you in prison, well…it protected you. You might have noticed the lack of scientists out for your blood, right? Well…you grew up and you could defend yourself, but when you were small? Hell, one of those bastards could have just adopted you, and who the hell would have cared? So…well…there it is. I am sorry for it. I'm also sorry we didn't tell you sooner. Do you still think you have to go in, or did I save you the trip?"

Megamind stared at the man in front of him completely speechless, the earnest blue eyes of the man before him searched almost wildly for a sign of truth. Finally the alien could only slump to the ground, sitting with his knees pulled up to his chest. Megamind leaned his head against the guard house, the information he had just been given picked apart inside of his head.

"Thank you for telling me."

"I'm really sorry we didn't tell you sooner." Fredrick sighed, scratching at his head under his cap.  
"If I could have, I would have, but you didn't give us much chance, am I right?" Another laugh bubbled forth, Megamind wincing slightly at the sound.

"You did give me information I had not known, but…I still need to talk to the Warden."

"Alright. Good luck, Megamind. I always knew you had it in you to be the hero." With that last parting comment, Fredrick gave him a visitor's pass and let him through, and the alien began the long walk into the building.

Megamind entered the prison and stiffened, half expecting the guards he passed to jump on him, shocked when none of them did, instead giving him wary nods and salutes, his visitors pass examined carefully. The prisoners, on the other hand, mainly shot him evil looks, baring teeth and pressing as close to the bars as they could. It was those people, the ones who showed so much hate towards him, that were one of the main reasons he had not wanted to enter. Up until Megamind had changed and chosen to be the hero, he was the bad guy, he was on their side.

They knew it.

He had basically committed mutiny against his entire family, so he walked with his head down, and his shoulders slumped. It was for this reason that he missed some of the other glances, the ones that were proud.

Megamind knocked on the door to the Warden's office gently, entering when he was bid to do so. He watched as the man's eyes widened, a wary grin splitting that face as the one who was standing there was processed.

"Well, I honestly hadn't expected to see you in awhile, or ever if you could help it. How have you been, Syx?"

The use of the name that he had been given and kept made Megamind sink down into the chair in front of the Warden's desk, his head falling into his hands. "I…I haven't been doing all that good, really."

"Oh? Why not?"

The conversation felt familiar, reminiscent of the many other conversations that he had had with the Warden as a child. Before he had made his choice, before he had become a villain. He closed his eyes, sighing, and then looked back up at him, green eyes meeting with blue warily. "Is it always so hard to be good? Are the nightmares of going back to villainy and terrorizing the masses normal? Well, no, I suppose they wouldn't be, but I guess they would be expected. But none of that is really what I am here for. Do you have my pod, Warden? The one that I arrived in, is it still here?"

The man straightened up, nodded once, and stood, leading Megamind out of the room. He did not address the other questions, sensing that he wasn't expected to, but the Warden did examine the alien carefully. "Why the sudden interest?"

"Huh? Oh, I merely realized that I did not know…well, anything really, who I am, even what I am. It's a strange feeling, you know. But I suppose I shall soon find out. Apparently they left the information in the pod. I should have thought of it sooner, but so it is." Megamind shrugged, examining the hallway they had entered, not having seen it before. They walked to the very back of the hallway, an eerie sort of feeling permeating the air. It could have been his own hesitation; his own fear of seeing what was in that pod that Minion had been scared of telling him. But he knew one thing for sure: he did not want to open that door.

It did not look particularly fancy, normal boring wood in a normal boring frame, but just knowing that behind that door was the answer to everything gave it that much more menace. He bit at his lower lip as the Warden inserted the key, unlocking it and turning to face the blue alien.

"I hope you find what you're looking for." He clapped him on the shoulder heavily, and then walked on. Or he would have, a thought occurred to the man, and he stood there contemplating it, and finally sighed. "Hey, Syx, you can call me John. If you ever have the gall to fall back into villainy, then we'll see about you calling me 'Warden'."

The words surprised the alien and he turned around to stare after him with a shocked look on his face, the corners of his lips finally tugging up into a smile. Then the reason why he was here came to him again, and he turned back to stare at the door. A trembling, black leather-clad hand reached out slowly, that lower lip worried again as the long fingers finally closed around the doorknob. He took a deep breath, and finally twisted the knob, pushing the door open in a smooth motion.

The lack of light made him hesitate, before he slowly stuck his hand into the room, feeling along the wall for the switch to turn the light on. When he finally found it he took a moment to muster up the courage to flick it and then berated himself. He was a superhero, a former supervillain, _he was scared of nothing_. The light flicked on and the warm glow that bathed the small, beaten up pod made him blink. There was nothing else in there, and with the room as small as it was, he was admittedly unsurprised. It seemed more like a supply closet than anything else, granted, a supply closet that housed alien technology, but a supply closet all the same.

He entered the room, hesitating before closing the door behind him. Syx walked forward, leather boots squeaking against faded linoleum, his focus on the small sphere, the one he remembered, the one a part of him feared. It took him a while to figure out why. After all, it was a message from his parents, the ones who loved him, who cared for him, why would he be afraid of his parents?

Then it hit him: What if he had been meant to be evil? What if evil was his destiny, his purpose, what he had been shipped off for? Would they still be proud of him? Could he continue being the hero if his parents would have been disgusted?

The questions made his stomach churn unpleasantly. Swallowing a lump in his throat he finally crouched down in front of the pod. He reached out, running his gloved fingers over the surface, peeling his other glove off with his teeth, pressing his fingers against it. Alien technology, _his_ technology, the only technology of his species that he had touched aside from his binky, and it was right in front of him, the answer to everything.

He ran his fingers along it gently, finding button along the side he pressed it, the hatch at the front springing open. Megamind took a breath, and slowly reached inside. He felt along the inside of the small pod, hoping to find something, anything that would let him know what he had to do to unlock the secrets to the pod, to his past.

There was the slight give of a button under one of his fingers, and suddenly the dome of the pod snapped back. A rush of electricity sparked along the inside of it, and the light bulb above him went out with a pop. Megamind crouched in the sudden darkness, feeling his heart hammer in his chest before a stream of light poured from the pod, spreading along the far wall.

In that light, projected there before him, were two faces that he had not seen since he was eight days old.

They were his parents. He felt his chest tighten, his Adams apple bobbing as he swallowed thickly, green eyes flickering from face to face, trying to take everything in. His father's full goatee and auburn eyes, his mothers smile, the green eyes that she had passed down to her son and seemed to be staring into his own; all things he had thought he would never see again.

"Son, if you are listening to this, then you survived to land on Earth, and we are no longer with you." His father's voice, something he hadn't heard in years, mellow, soothing, and apologetic. "I understand that you may have questions, may have no idea of who you are, who your people were, and we are have recorded this message and included the files you will find in the pod, to answer them."

"The first thing that we want you to know is that we are sorry we couldn't come with you. We are sorry that we could not, but our planet did not have the resources necessary to create a rocket big enough." His mother's voice, and he felt something inside himself clench, he had been having trouble remember her voice, now that he could hear it…it was the most beautiful thing he had ever heard.

"Why, why couldn't you?" He found himself asking, too caught up in the moment to realize that the ones before him were a recording, they were unable to answer back.

"Our planet, you see, was caught in a war, a war of two species, two planets, our people, the Sinevians of the planet Sineva."

Megamind mouthed the name of his people, his eyes closing as he rolled it on his tongue. When his mother continued to talk he snapped his eyes back open, listening closely.

"And _their_ people…"

"Who's people?"

"We are losing." Three words and he watched his parents faces crumble, their fingers tightening on hands, eyes closing and leaning against each other for comfort. "It has been a long war and our resources are mostly gone. We cannot keep fighting."

"We should have never have been fighting to begin with," Megamind's father hissed out, looking to the side angrily.

"Dear…"

"No, I will not, he deserves to know the whole of it, including our part in it." Megamind watched silently as his parents looked at each other on that screen, that one moment holding fear and frustration, before she backed down.

"Alright…"

"We were boastful, proud of our accomplishments and happy to help others see exactly how much more superior we were. We wound up making enemies of the wrong people. But they had been looking for a reason to declare war on us for years, ever since they knew of us and how _different_ we were. There are not many like us in this galaxy, son, you may never find another with the same shape, but we sent you to those who have a similar heart. But our planet was…filled with such foolishness, such hatred as we created these weapons…as we fought so desperately to defend ourselves.

"I eventually could not take it." Megamind watched as his father clenched his fist, his disgust with himself visible. "I built a device, a device with the power to create a black hole. I was so sick of everything, the war, the poverty, of the suffering I saw everywhere; I eventually decided to end it. And then something happened. I met your mother. She changed…everything for me. I saw the good in this place, in both worlds, and it was amazing. I never activated the device, and our bitter war continued. They would not listen to please of peace, they wish for us to be dead, for our influence to be gone. I did not know how much this was the case until I found my device stolen.

"I do not know if they are able to activate, if they are smart enough, but know this: if they do…it will be my fault, and I cannot bear the thought. I cannot…stand it. I have singlehandedly caused the death of two species, and your mother, my wife…she has not left me, no matter how much I wish her to." Megamind's mother looked at the camera, her eyes reflecting her stance in staying, her mouth set.

"I will not leave your father, he is a good man, and as much as he wishes to blame himself, he cannot. It will be them that activates the device, not the Sinevians. Their evil, not ours. My son, I love you, I love you so much, and I wish I could see you grow, but this cannot be. We have lost so much of our culture, so much of our accomplishments…but what saddens me most is that I will never see yours."

"We are…were, in your time, sending you to Earth. It is my hope that you will be safe there. Know this, my son, my one wish for you is that you do not make the same mistake I do. Do not let your grief and anger blind you to the good in your world, your situation. You are destined for greatness, my son, and be certain of one thing: Your parents love you, no matter what you do, no matter who you turn out to be, we will always love you."

Megamind stared up at the two faces as the recording froze in place, choking on the emotion that built up in his throat. Suddenly, the device he had created that would alert him to when the city was threatened went off, and he desperately began swiping at the tears he had not been aware of until that moment.

"Oh, come on, people of Metrosity, can't you wait for one moment?" He groaned, and finally stood up straight, adjusting his clothing, he knew that they couldn't wait…

He de-hydrated the pod, taking a few deep breaths before tucking the cube into his belt and running out of the prison. As much as he knew he needed more time to process, that his current emotional state would be dangerous, he knew that the people needed him, and he had two parents to continue to make proud.


	6. On

_Hey guys, back again, another update, just a bit of action for you to pick up the pace a bit. Fun times are ahead of us people, fun times..._  
...

Megamind ran, fingers checking along his belt and finally chucking a blue and shining cube in front of him, flying into the air from his hand before it landed in a puddle. It expanded, transforming and shaping itself into his hover-bike. Megamind leaped onto it, Fredrick's cries of support and general cries of, "Go get 'em" registering far back in his subconscious, the rest of him focused.

"Minion, what's going on?" Megamind called into his communicator located on his wrist.

"We have a new villain, sir! The brain bots are doing what they can, but they need you. He's strong, but he doesn't seem to be too bright, sir!"

"Sounds like Metro Man all over again…"

"Oh no, sir, he's nothing like Metro Man, he's, well, he's much uglier for one."

"…Thank you for that wonderful explanation of how he is unlike Metro Man, how else does he differ, tell me something I can use!"

"Oh, sorry, um…he has a jackhammer for one hand, and the other…he has a buzz saw… He's definitely not that bright though, sir, he keeps trying to swat at the brain bots, but they fly too high for him to reach. He is also a foul-mouthed oaf."

"Should the de-hydrator work on him?"

"I'd think so, sir. He seems to be human, even with all the other accessories."

"Alright, his location?"

"Fifth street, sir." As soon as the fish spoke there was an explosion off to the right, Megamind perking his head up and facing it, a type of dreadful fear in his heart. He immediately gunned the accelerator, spinning the bike as he rocketed in the direction of the fireball and the screaming. He was actually surprised to find that he was beginning to hate screaming.

The closer he got the more worried he continued to grow, the people who saw him shouted something nearly constantly, it took him a while to realize what it was, and when he did he immediately began yelling orders into his wrist communicator. It didn't matter how stupid the man was, he was using dynamite, and he was blowing it up under the city. Brain bots were sent en masse to the sewers, their programming letting them know what to do, how to treat explosives and what to do with them when they were found.

Megamind was never happier that he had included that function.

He reached the scene in time to view yet another explosion. Megamind felt the bike react to the kickback of the high burst of heat and force, and lurched with it, maintaining control thanks to the improvements he had made on it. He did not wish for another moment like the one Minion had had with Titan. He squinted through the fire and smoke, peering around for a sight of the cause.

When he finally caught sight of the root cause he almost fell off his bike. Large, bulky and unkempt, the man was everything Metro Man was not, greasy, and mangy, and lacking even rudimentary style. White and stained tank top, baggy blue jeans, dirty work boots, and rather frightening brown facial hair started the look of an insane construction worker; the orange and white hazard cone on his head and the jackhammer and buzz saw completed the picture.

"Where is your mighty hero now that his city is falling down around him?" He shouted, waving his arms above his head, stomping towards the few people he could, the brain bots attempting to do what they could to keep him from hurting too many people. As Minion had said they were dancing around, just out of reach, and then, as Megamind was watching, the jackhammer managed to impale one of his bots, one of his 'babies'.

Megamind's eyes narrowed, he puffed his chest out slightly and shouted, "Hey, tall, fat, and ugly, here I am!"

With that last shout and a burst of acceleration, the bike was sent hurtling at the man standing there, his loud, "It's Destruction Worker!"was almost drowned out in the roar of the thrusters. People cheered, nearly immediately beginning to scream as the jackhammer arm was slammed through the bike, the saw sent towards the blue hero, only for him to leap over it. He turned in a summersault in midair, pulling his de-hydrator from its holster and aiming, squeezing the trigger, only for the man to somehow throw his bulk away from the beam of light that instead contacted on the sparking ruin of the bike.

It shrank into a blue cube as Megamind continued his forward roll, managing to land on his feet and skid for a short distance before he forced himself to turn around, de-hydrator aimed. It would have looked better had his cape not fallen over his face. He let out a strangled yell, flipping it out of the way and barely managing to duck in time to dodge the jackhammer thrust towards his face.

Megamind stumbled back, the constant attempt to hit him with the large weapons forcing him to retreat more than he'd like, the saw suddenly slicing along his arm. Megamind gasped in pain, before glaring, taking the enemies cries of celebration and obvious distraction as an advantage. He was having issues with the banter. Hero banter was much different to villain banter, and Destruction Worker did not give him much opportunity to respond. Or any real openings.

Megamind ducked, rolled, twisted and dodged like they hadn't been aware the small yet apparently nimble alien was able to. He finally managed to back up farther out of the Worker's range, when he stomped his right foot down, jerking it forward, the heel of his boot sliding out and snapping down. There was a moment when Destruction Worker stared at it in confusion, before with a sudden burst of fire, Megamind was launched, spinning sideways, over Destruction Worker, managing to slam his fist into his back between the shoulder blades.

The grunt and the way he fell forward was unexpected. For someone who looked so small to actually manage to cause pain or a reaction of such magnitude, considering how much he was dwarfed, was beyond shocking. The heel snapped back and Megamind launched himself forward. He connected hit after hit, obviously surprising more than the onlookers who had frozen. The large man was consistently shoved back, mainly due to the inability to believe what was happening.

Suddenly Destruction Workers buzz saw swung towards Megamind, the blue alien immediately bending backwards, the saw missing him, only for the jackhammer to be swung right down. Megamind hesitated for a moment before bringing his arms up, crossed, the jackhammers body caught in the x, the spikes there causing sparks as they were imbedded in the wiring.

He shoved it back after twisting his right arm slightly, an object that had been in his hand now attached to the jackhammer. There was a moment when it began beeping, and then it exploded. It was a tame explosion, mainly focused on the jackhammer itself, but there was no denying that it had been a bomb.

Definitely not the weapon of choice for a hero.

Destruction Worker's yell of surprise was an invitation for Megamind to throw another object. This one connected with the saw and exploded outward to reveal a type of lock. The saw was frozen in place and the black binding that caused it to freeze was imbedded deeply into the base itself.

Destruction worker looked at both objects with an expression of both shock and scorn. He then met eyes with Megamind and charged, yelling as he went, swinging both arms at him.

Megamind stepped back, leaning away, causing the infuriated Worker to trip over his boot. The man slammed against the pavement, Syx following the one code of a hero that he remembered: Never attack a man when he's down.

"It doesn't matter you know, my bombs will destroy this city, you will all die!" the Destruction Worker shouted, shoving himself upright as he wobbled, his shirt torn and dirtied.

It was at that moment that one of Megamind's brain bots flew down, hovering beside their maker as it gave out a few inarticulate sounds that were obviously understood by the alien. The smile that Megamind fixed him with was equal parts amused and challenging. "Oh, really? Because according to Mauler over here, they just finished getting all your bombs. Your plan has failed."

Destruction Worker glared and with a guttural yell charged again. The Worker was spun around and shoved against the wall, Megamind's gun un-holstered and pointing towards his back.

"Surrender and you won't be de-hydrated…" he nearly snarled. They didn't care that snarling wasn't something heroes did, they were too busy feeling relieved.

"Surrender? I am Destruction Worker, I do not surrender, I have tunnels upon tunnels under this city, you will taste my wrath and fear, your doom will be by my hand! You do not de-hydrate me, I destroy you, for I am the Destruction Worker!" His guttural voice echoed, his consistent threats listened to, Megamind understanding the vast amount of information that the villain could give away, even on accident. The information he was getting wasn't good, but it could be worked with.

There were tunnels under the city, beyond the sewer tunnels, tunnels that could fit the entirety of the city's population. They were also waiting to be filled with dynamite, that the Destruction Worker luckily did not have. Yet. But Megamind was going to be certain that he wouldn't get the chance. Seemed like he had a new job: find those tunnels.

The sudden attempt to hit him with the jackhammer was not avoided this time. Megamind was sent reeling, but managed to pull the trigger and keep his aim steady. Destruction Worker was now merely a small blue cube, his side on the other hand hurt like hell. Syx took a breath, touching it gingerly and wincing. The applause and cheers that were given to him acted a bit like a balm. He smiled widely, standing up straight, touching his arm under the wound.

"Hey, he's hurt!" The shout of something so obvious, yet something that he knew would surprise and worry them made his eyes close.

Metro Man had never gotten hurt. Their new hero was frail. Or, that's what he thought was going through their minds. The sudden cry of: "Ha, you think he's hurt, he totally trashed that guy! I didn't know you could fight."

Megamind blinked, looking at the man in front of him curiously. "Of course I can, you don't believe that just because I focus more on weapons means that I can't actually fight someone physically, do you?"

"You don't exactly look like the strongest guy…"

"Which is precisely why I decided to fight in such a manner. I am alien in several ways, my friend. Your gravity does not provide me with the means or the necessity to develop myself physically. It's much too weak." He waved it away, grinning, and there was suddenly a hand on his arm. He winced, nearly jerking away, only to look up into the green worried eyes of a female, someone he recognized as a nurse, he had seen her before.

Police were breaking up the crowd, moving them out of the danger zone, a few of them sending nods to their new hero. In the midst of it, Megamind and the woman stood, two blue cubes near them glinting.

"He got you good." The blonde haired woman appraised his arm carefully, holding it up a little so she could see the cut.

"Yes, well…" He fidgeted, not quite comfortable with her hands on him.

"Hold still, let's see if you need stitches."

"Oh, that won't be necessary, thank you. My skin sews itself together quite nicely."

"I believe you mean 'knits'." She corrected with a smile.

"Knits, yes, that's it." At this point, he would have said anything to get her to let go of him and let _him_ go.

The sudden shout of worry in a voice that Megamind knew immediately pulled him away from the nurse, the name, "Roxanne" leaving his lips. The reporter shoved her way through, took one look at her slightly worse-for-wear boyfriend and just about collapsed. She let out a loud sigh and smiled at him.

"You got him?"

"Yep, right here!" He bent down, gasping at the pain that flashed along his ribs, and causing both women to reach for him, he immediately waved them away. "It's just a little sore, I'm quite alright, a little injury like that is nothing." He scoffed, laughing it off, finishing his motion of reaching out to take the cube and walking over to the nearest officer. Megamind hesitated, the name of the officer right on the tip of his tongue…

"Mathew!" he called out, the tall black-haired man turning to look at him. The officer grinned and when his eyes focused on the blue cube he laughed.

"So, you got him. Great job, Syx…oh, Megamind, apologies."

"No, it's alright. I understand your slip. Just, be sure not to do that with a lot of people, yes?"

"Can do," Mathew affirmed, and accepted the cube from Megamind. "Make sure not to get it wet, right?"

"Exactly, I don't know if the jackhammer or the saw is actually fused with his arms, so I would recommend keeping him in cube form until I can devise a way to remove them if they are, or we can remove them safely."

"Sounds like a plan. And hey, great job on your first time playing the hero against the bigger villain, heard you put on quite the show."

"Are you kidding? That was the most minimal show I've ever made! I had no smoke, no music…"

Mathew laughed, clapping him on his upper arm. "You'll do great." He left then, calling out to one of his fellow officers.

"I think the city is really ready to accept you…" The quiet voice of Roxanne near his ear almost made him jump, but he managed to turn and face her calmly. She smiled at him, her blue eyes sparking, and he felt that nearly familiar jump of his heart.

"Really?"

"Well, I suppose it already has, but it's beginning to happen on an individual basis." She leaned forward, kissing him gently. "I'm really proud of you."

Megamind felt like he could take on the world.  
…

Music Man paced, unable to keep still, the constant beeping, now that he was aware of it, eating into his skull. He felt older than he ever had, running his hand through his hair and groaning. He hadn't even changed his clothes yet, white bathrobe over white pajamas. He was honestly getting tired of white.

He looked at the calendar placed on the glass table. Mark had been unable to keep away from it, and had finally just thrown it there, a circle surrounding one of the days. He was beginning to dread falling asleep, because falling asleep meant he would wake up one day closer to that circle. Music Man sighed, sinking down onto the couch, his head in his hands and his throat feeling like it was clogged.

For the first time in his life, he felt like he was going to die.


	7. The

_Another time another chapter. ACT of death tomorrow. Oh the joy... I wanna puke. Hope you enjoy the chapter anyway people, soon. Very very soon, and everything will be ready to burn._  
...

Megamind burst into his lair with the kind of infectious energy that made everyone within a short distance automatically notice him. In this case, that referred to the brain bots, and to Minion, who ran forward happily, his masters safe return always cause for celebration. It didn't help that this was one of the first major battles against a larger-than-life villain who was attempting to refer to himself as 'super'. Roxanne followed close behind him, leaning against the doorway happily as she watched her boyfriend laugh and celebrate, tossing a wrench for the bots to chase, calling for Minion to play all the best music.

It was a celebration that she was soon dragged into willingly. Megamind seemed to not feel any of the pain in his limbs or body, dancing with her to the blaring of Welcome to the Jungle, a song that had become synonymous with rescue in her mind. Minion was called over to join in and it began a sort of romp throughout the lair, the brain bots happily joining. They laughed, cries of celebration and joy passing between them easily.

"Great job, sir, wonderful job!" Minion called, his piranha teeth pulled into a wide and happy smile.

"Thank you, thank you, hold your applause." Megamind bowed and finally slumped back into his couch, smiling with happiness and satisfaction.

"I have to hand it to you, you did great today."

"Was there ever any doubt?" He smiled, raising an eyebrow at her, an eyebrow that quickly lowered at the slightly nonplussed look that spread over Roxanne's face.

"Of course not, silly. I knew you could do wonderful." She rolled her eyes, a small part of her reeling with the amount of control she seemed to have over him that a single look from her could cause happiness or trauma. The immediate brightening of his expression proved it to her. What does a woman do with such a power?

With a happy sigh, Megamind leaned back into the chair slightly; his mind focused in nothing more than deep satisfaction as bone-deep weariness enveloped him. He wasn't quite sure why, it hadn't been that trying of a battle, not very long, certainly damaging, but it was nothing like the battles he had had with Metro Man, let alone Titan. It was only when he began to finally nod off that he remembered the other blue cube tucked in his belt, and the events that happened before.

Minion turned the song off, Roxanne unfolding a blanket over the blue hero and tucking him in gently. She didn't like the way that he did not have a bed, but she was learning to let it be. She just now knew what she would get him for Christmas, that was all. Minion smiled at her happily, leading her out of what served for the living quarters of the lair and into what doubled as a kitchen. He made her tea happily, their conversation light and airy. She was beginning to quite like the alien fish. He was pleasant, charming, and was obviously the only friend Megamind had ever had for quite awhile. That alone was reason enough for her to like him.

"He did great today, Minion."

"I'm proud of him, I always knew he could do it!"

"Why didn't you tell him?"

Minion was quiet for a moment, finally letting out a sigh that caused bubbles to rise through his bowl. "My job is to follow his orders, to follow him to the end. I promised his parents and I promise him. I admit, at one time I did not follow him, but I have never regretted anything more. I just didn't want for him to get hurt. How was I to know that the woman who had stolen his heart also had her own stolen?" He gave her a shy smile and she couldn't help but smile gently in return.

"I'm glad it happened."

"I am, too. Unbelievably glad," Minion affirmed, moving his fish body in an up and down motion that resembled a nod.

"You know, I just realized…all this time I've had access to one of the best informants into the mind of my boyfriend, and I never used him. What can you tell me, Minion? I'll ask him as well, but I'm curious as to how you see it. Is he adjusting well, is life better for him now than it was when he first got her? What was he like as a boy?" The last question felt like an afterthought, but she couldn't help remembering another face with the same eyes telling her that none of the other kids had liked him.

"Oh, he was the average genius with a larger than normal head and blue skin."

"Meaning not average at all."

"Precisely, Miss. Ritchi, precisely. He was someone who stood out like a sore thumb and was so…innocent, that most kids saw him as a target, once he went to school that is. Before that the Warden took care of him. Or…took as much care of him as he could. Syx was not someone who could have gone into the orphanage, or so I was told by the Warden. He didn't know what would happen, and he knew that the prisoners were attached to the small boy, that they affectionately referred to as 'Little-Blue'."

"'Little-Blue'? That's so cute!"

"He didn't particularly like it much, but he got used to it, especially when the other kids names turned out to be worse."

"So he never had anyone attempt to be friendly?"

"No. He was too strange for them, he was too...frightening. Mark went to the same school, but whereas Syx was blue and looked alien, Mark was even more powerful, and looked human. I suppose that's all that matters."

"Wait, Metro Man and Megamind went to the same school?"

"Yes, they did. He was…not very nice to him." Minion frowned slightly. "Not that I expected anything else, I mean…" He seemed to realize what he was saying, his teeth sliding together harshly, his eyes widening, and he cleared his throat.

"Why didn't you expect anything else?"

"I can't tell. It's not for me to tell."

"Why not?"

"Because I promised. I already broke one promise and almost lost my friend for good. I am not breaking another one." Minion met her eyes, the brown holding such stern conviction and intensity in them that she could do nothing more than back down, nodding. She still had questions that demanded to be asked, but she could also take a hint.

It wasn't long after their conversation that Megamind awoke with a gasp, sitting up in the couch, his eyes wide as they flickered from shadow to shadow. He groaned, his head dropping into his long and thin-fingered hands. He hated nightmares.

He also hated not knowing everything. He considered re-hydrating the pod, but he wasn't sure that he wanted to hear anything more at the moment. Not after something like the nightmare he had just had. Vicious colors and shifting images that made no sense but awakened nothing more or less than the deepest fear in his heart. Megamind took a few deep breaths, forcing his heart to calm, and pushed himself out of the couch, folding the blanket for his fishy friend.

Syx needed air. He needed space to think.

Roxanne exited the room, looking to give one last kiss to her boyfriend, preferably on his forehead -he just looked so cute when he slept- only to find that he wasn't there. She narrowed her eyes slightly, her mind flashing through the possibilities. If she were a blue alien, where would she go? She tucked a piece of stray brown hair behind her ear and looked around considering, and then looked over to the stairs.  
….

Megamind stood on the roof of his lair, staring out into the wide open sky before him, green eyes barely flickering in their glazed and thoughtful state. He hadn't moved for a while, leaning against the railing, cape still about him as there was no wind. He didn't notice when the door opened behind him, jumping at the sudden hand that grasped his arm. Green eyes met worried blue, a wealth of communication tried to pass between them, but they found that they didn't truly know the other well enough for that.

"Megamind, what's wrong?" Roxanne asked, the brunette examining the blue alien quietly. "You've been oddly subdued for a while now, did something happen?"

"Did I tell you that I was learning more about my species, Roxanne?"

"How?"

"The pod my parents sent me in. I was able to hear them talk to me; they recorded themselves in order to tell me certain things. I watched it before I fought the Destruction Worker. They…they said they would always proud of me, no matter what I did. Roxanne…no one's ever said that to me before. I don't know what to do with that feeling. What do I do with it? How can they be proud of me? I did…I did precisely what my father told me not to do. I got angry over my situation; I hated the people who treated me wrongly, I paid them back ten times as worse. How could he still be proud of me?"

"Oh, Megamind…he was your father, that was your mother. Of course they will be proud of you, sure you were a villain before, but you aren't now. You're a hero! You're our hero and you are working so hard at improving your image and reputation, heck, if they aren't proud of you, I'm proud of you!"

"You are?"

"Of course I am. You deserve it. You've worked so hard." She leaned forward then, pressing her lips to his forehead as she had so wanted to earlier.

"I have…" Megamind asked, slightly unfocused as she kissed his nose.

"So, what did you learn?" She asked, kissing his lips gently.

"What did I…" He was completely and totally dazed.

"About your parents, what did you learn?" She asked with a smile, leaning back against the railing, giving him space to regroup his scattered thoughts.

"Oh! Megamind brightened up immediately and launched into an explanation, his eyes reflecting his sadness at some of what was said. She hugged him gently when he finished.

"Are you going to be okay?"

"I'll be fine. It was nice to see them again. I had almost forgotten what mother sounded like." He puckered his lips slightly, looking slightly horrified at the idea, his eyes flickering to hers. "What's it like to forget?"

"What do you mean?"

"I…I remember everything that happened to me since I was two days old, but I sometimes find that I can't quite recall everything all at once, sometimes it's a little fuzzy. But I always remember it. What is it like to forget such things, does it hurt? Does it make you sad?"

Roxanne was silent for a moment, thinking, leaning against the railing as she struggled to put her thoughts together in a coherent manner. "Forgetting is, well…just that, it's forgetting. You don't remember it, so you can't be sad about it, and sometimes, forgetting can be a wonderful thing. It's a natural human reaction to forget the things that hurt us, the things that traumatize us would better be the better explanation. Sometimes the things we most remember are the ones that hurt, those little humiliations and past experiences of pain."

"That sounds like it sucks…"

"It does, just a bit. But you get used to it."

"I hope I never do…"

Roxanne was silent for a moment, her eyes contemplating the blue alien as he leaned forward against the railing, his posture mirroring hers, all black leathers and long lines. "You know, I'm pretty sure you won't have to."

He smiled and that was enough for her.  
….

Mark flew as far away from the city as he could go and still see it, which was quite far. His arms were crossed, his face haggard, and his mouth pulled into a thin line. He took a breath, releasing it in a puff of moisture that came from being as high up in the air as he was. The day was dying, the sun sinking over the ocean in front of him, a bleeding sore that was somehow still beautiful.

In two days. It was coming in two days. He took a few deep breaths, attempting to remain calm, his fear and rage rising to a fever pitch. He felt trapped, something that he had been familiar with, and had desperately wished to never feel again. He was now realizing how foolish it had been. He could not escape from what he was; he could not escape from what was to come.

No matter how much he had wished to.

Music Man gave a brief snort of laughter. Since when did he ever get what he wanted? The bitter thought crossed his mind in a flash and he struggled against it. He knew that he had been privileged, living a life of luxury that most would have killed for. He knew that Megamind had tried to, that much was certain. But none of that contested with the fact that he was a very selfish man, he knew it, as much as it pained him, but he could not seem to shake it. He was selfish, egotistical, and he was also very tired.

He had never felt so worn down before, but he knew that it was only going to get worse. He could only pray that Megamind would be up for the challenge when it finally arrived, because if he wasn't…he knew that Metro City and the rest of the world would suffer for it, and Little Blue did not deserve that kind of pressure, or that kind of harsh reality.

Mark focused on the two figures that stood near the railing on the roof of a familiar building and sent quiet vibes of encouragement and hope, his own silent prayer rising up to the heavens.

_Please, please let him be ready…_


	8. Other

_Consider this something like the calm before the storm and what a storm it shall be... _

_I'm playing a bit with the relationship between Megamind and Metro Man/Music Man/Mark, not to say that I'm working on making them a couple or anything (because I'm not and I think I'd rather gag myself with a skunk than do that), but I'm leaning towards the elder brother/younger brother sort of bond. That's what we'll get here, I just found such things as Metro/Music Man's 'I knew you had it in you, little buddy' too tempting to not play with it. That said, this chapter will be the last one before another character will be introduced, fear it, ladies and gentlemen, fear it._  
...

Megamind was just finishing the final touches on his latest blueprint when there was a brief knock on the door. He turned from the bench, calling, "Come in!" He blinked when Music Man entered the room calmly, through the door, but he gave a wide smile anyway. "Oh, and here I was thinking you didn't know how to use doors!" The blue alien laughed, "What can I do for you?"

"I…I was just curious to see how you were adjusting. You working on any new inventions?"

"Yes, several…"

"May I see?"

Megamind hesitated, tapping a finger to his chin as he examined the man cautiously. "Well…I don't see why not! Come on over, I just finished the blueprints to this." He waved him over, indicating the papers strewn over the desk. Mark examined them curiously, only to look back up to the other alien, unable to make out what it was.

"Um…you're the technical genius, not me, what is all this?"

Megamind grinned. "It was supposed to be a surprise," he said gleefully, "but as you were the former hero, I figure it's only fair to let you see what the new one is planning. This is the plan for a new weapon, it's somewhat similar to your eye lasers, only made a bit more…safe, I suppose would be the word. It won't cause anything more than slight burns, but packs quite a bit of zap, if I got it right, that is. At least on humans, it can cut through metal if placed on the right setting."

"How long will it take you to make it?"

"Hmm? Oh, it's an upgrade for the watch. It won't take that long at all, I merely have to get all the tools, and…"

"What tools do you need?"

"Oh…well, there's the…" He listed them out easily and concisely, knowing that the words would be lost on the former superhero and mainly attempting to show off, but when Mark began zooming off to different parts of the lab in order to get the ones he knew, he began describing the rest. Soon there was a nice pile of them, and Megamind happily set to work, Mark leaning against the wall and watching him, listening to the alien ramble.

It didn't take all that long, Megamind twisting the watch easily to its new setting, slight hesitation obvious in his expression. He carefully pressed the watchface button, and the immediate beam of red light contacted the spare wrench he had placed on the desk. The red light sliced through the wrench as cleanly as if it were made of butter. Megamind gave a brief shout of success, when Mark tapped him. "Well, let's see about that 'zap' shall we? Hit me here." He pointed to his forearm easily.

"But I don't know if it will be able to change settings, I am never quite certain of such things…"

"I doubt it will hurt me…"

"Yes, well…" Megamind cleared his throat and finally held his watch up and pressed the button.

Mark barely reacted, the laser not having a noticeable effect on him, but he nodded. "I'd say that shouldn't cause much harm."

"Yes, well, you've never exactly been hurt before." He hesitated a moment before applying it to his arm, hissing through his teeth at the sensation and stopping. Megamind examined the spot quietly before smiling with a nod. "That really should work."

Minion entered the room quietly, about to say something to his master, his arms full of blueprints, when he realized who was standing with him. Minion had recognized that Mark thought of Syx as something like a younger brother years ago. It took him a while to understand it, how could one think of the other as such when he was just so…different, especially with the history that came with the two of them, but so it was. He also recognized that Megamind also understood that unspoken relationship, the mentor and the student, so he was always quietly trying to meet the approval of Metro Man. He needed that approval because he had had so little of it. Minion hesitated for a moment and quietly left the room, leaving the blueprints on the stool near the bookshelf. He'd give the 'siblings' a moment.

"So, what else were you planning on doing?" Mark continued quietly, leaning against the desk as he watched the alien gesticulate.

"Oh, well…many things."

"Any weapons, like…big weapons, that aren't lethal?"

"Well, I don't have many ideas for that, but…"

"Can you come up with any?"

"Weapons? Well, I suppose, it might take a while, I also have to fix my battle suit so it's actually able to sense when someone is in front of me, but…"

"I think that can wait for later." Mark said, and Megamind froze, looking at the ex-superhero with wide eyes.

"But, Music Man, it's for the good of all involved, if it can't sense them I might step on them a crush them…"

"It's not important."

"I thought that the job of the superhero was to protect everyone, Mark, you're not acting all that hero-ish."

"Yeah, well, Syx, maybe you should actually work on stopping those villains before you worked on fixing your junk, how about that?" He puffed himself up in reply, towering over the smaller alien, glaring viciously. Megamind shrank back due to shock, wide green eyes fixing with glaring blue. Mark seemed to realize that and sighed, rubbing a hand through his hair. "I'm sorry. I'm kind of tense…"

"Music career not going well?" Megamind asked cautiously. He had been threatened by someone with the power that Metro Man possessed when there was no attempt to hold back, he had no wish to face such a thing again.

"No, it's going fine, they seem to appreciate me for my lyrics if nothing else." Mark shrugged. In reality, he was known as a guilty pleasure. He could take it, he was following his calling.

"All your songs are praise to Metro Man, of course they like them." Megamind smirked, rolling his eyes.

"True."

"Then what is it?"

"I just…I just think something really bad is going to happen tomorrow. I want to make sure you're prepared…"

"Do you know of something that will happen?"

"Yeah. It's…it's going to be big. Hey, I have been meaning to ask, are you able to use the weapon you created that gives people my powers on yourself? I mean, it seems like something you'd be able to do if you really needed to."

Megamind deflated slightly, giving a half-grin. "Yes, well, I actually ran some tests on that. My genetic makeup rebels against the DNA that gave you your powers to the point where I would turn into a steaming pile of goo if I were to use it on myself. I have wanted to, most certainly, the power of flight is something that I've been after for a while now, but I finally managed to obtain it. Watch." Megamind smiled, both boot heels slid backwards, clicking back as he tapped his heels together once. The ignition was rapid and uncontrolled, at least at first; he managed to gain control of it before he smashed into the ceiling.

Mark grinned. "Nice idea, little-blue, how long are you able to fly like that for?"

"Well…not all that long." He touched down carefully, the boot heels snapping back into place. "I am working on an alternate fuel source to keep it stable and flying for a bit longer than short bursts. It isn't like my other inventions; the fuel can only be used sparingly."

"Makes sense, anything else?"

"Are you hoping for something big and extravagant?"

"Maybe…maybe a little more…deadly…"

"But that's not the hero way." The confusion in his voice was obvious and Mark winced.

"Yeah, well…sometimes it should be."

"I don't follow."

"Look, there are bad people, bad people that would never repent, that can't repent, that would never stop until they had burned down the whole world. Sometimes you can't throw them in jail, sometimes they'd just…break out." He waved his arm in a sweeping gesture that was one part dramatic, three parts exasperated. "I just…I want you to understand that. You need to know that. You can't be afraid to finally destroy them."

"But I…I've never killed anyone before. Not even accidentally, are you actually asking me to murder someone?"

"No. Not murder, just…look, you have to understand that if you don't kill them, sometimes they'll kill you."

"But there are rules, several rules, one doesn't just…"

"They aren't going to follow the rules; they don't care about the rules." Mark shoved his hands through his hair, sending it into frazzled curls and sticking up in strange places. "Look, I get you're apprehensive about such a thing, but…you might not have a choice."

"Do you…do you _know_ the one who's coming?" Megamind finally asked, his expression forming into confused curiosity.

Mark looked at him quietly and then his eyes lit up, his mouth pulling into a wide smile. "Syx, I have an idea. I never thought of this, but I don't know why…" He cleared his throat, straightening up and looking Syx in the eye, clasping his hands on the smaller alien's shoulders. "Syx, I've been thinking, we aren't fighting any more, in fact, I'd say we've almost become friends over these past few months. I think I can trust that you aren't putting on this whole charade in order to pull the wool over my eyes and finally manage to kill me."

"No, of course not, it's not a _sherade_, or anything of that sort!"

"Let me finish. I feel that I can trust you and so I shall tell you something no one else knows. My only weakness."

Megamind's eyes widened, his mouth falling open. "You don't have to!" He quickly protested, backing out of the man's grip, gesticulating wildly. "There's no need any more, I'm not after you, we aren't fighting, everything's fine!"

"You're right, I don't have to, I want to."

"Well…if you're sure, I always have been curious…what is it?"

"My weakness is…" Music Man opened his mouth to tell him and froze. He blinked once, twice, and then tried again. He cleared his throat, trying again, the words sticking in his throat, before his throat, something blocking his ability. His face twisted slightly as he tried to force something through his straining vocal chords. Megamind watched in confusion; watching as the man's face reddened, fear contorting it as blue eyes flicked from point to point wildly. Mark choked, strained, and in a fit of panic and despair launched himself up into the air, smashing through the ceiling and vanishing out of sight.

Megamind stared at the whole in the ceiling, shock and a bit of fear coloring his expression, slowly walking forward to stare up through the hole. "Oh, sure, now you break through my ceiling!" He shouted out in a mixture of anger and pure bafflement.

Minion chose that time to enter, blinking up at the hole in the ceiling and flicking his eyes down to look at his master. "What happened, sir?"

"I…I'm not certain, Minion, he just…wigged out!"

"What was he trying to do?"

"He was trying to tell me what his weakness was."

Minion was silent for a moment, his mind whirring, eyes shifting slightly, before he looked at his master directly. "Sir, I think now would be a good time to continue searching through that pod. You need to know a bit more, sir. It will help you understand."

Megamind turned to face him, blinking, and slowly nodded, shock lending hesitance.

Meanwhile Mark was close to blowing his cover if only for the want of throwing something large and heavy and destroying things. Why couldn't he say it? What was _wrong_ with him? He wasn't usually like this, this was just…wrong. Everything was wrong. He shouted his defiance, pain and misery swallowing him.

Megamind wasn't ready. He would have absolutely no chance, and now it was becoming increasingly obvious to Mark that he would not be able to help. He closed his eyes, bowing his head, swallowing tightly against the emotion that bubbled up. The former hero breathed deeply, salty air stinging his nose, his eyes opening as he looked up to stare at the sun, his fists clenched. The fiery orb was heading towards noon and he could think of nothing more to do to help Megamind. He could only hope.

How he hated hope when all he wanted was something a little more concrete.

Mark scoffed slightly, smirking at the sun, nodding his head slightly. Screw it. Just screw it, he knew that he would regret it, but there was nothing he could do. Tomorrow would come and he'd just have to face it. He was okay with that. With any luck, Little-Blue would die quick; he wasn't strong enough to face what was to come. Mark smirked bitterly and finally began to laugh.

"Come on! Bring it, we're ready for you!" He shouted, aware that no one would hear him, but doing so anyway, laughing as he went. He made a brief loop in the air and proceeded to fly home, laughing the entire way there.

So they were all going to die tomorrow, that didn't mean he couldn't party today!


	9. Hand

_I am so so so so soooo sorry for the length of time between updates. I can blame it on school and it would be true, I can blame it on writers block and it would be true, but really, I'm just glad to finally have something up here. Next chapter should not have that much of a wait between postings. I shall try not to let that happen again. Thank you for your patience, hope you continue to enjoy. I also throw in some plot-twists from hell. Do forgive me, I couldn't help it._  
...

Megamind let Minion lead him to the pod, sitting down in front of it as the fish activated it calmly and backed away. Megamind watched him leave before taking a deep breath and beginning to examine the rest of it. The pod was filled with more buttons than he could believe, but he began running through them anyway, happily watching the material pass in front of his eyes as more information was given to him than he could believe.

He listened to his parents outline the way their society worked, everything almost devoured in his haste to understand everything. He spent a long time going through their language, unable to believe how easy it was to use. Sure he figured that his language would be better for him than English, his tongue and vocal chords were prone to getting stuck on some of the words, but he hadn't expected it to be this easy. But it was still just one aspect of his culture and history and he begrudgingly moved on.

Megamind smiled at the look of love that his parents shared when he found pictures of them in various places. But the smile faded somewhat. He couldn't believe what he had lost. It didn't seem possible. His family had been loving and it was quite obvious that they had wanted a child. But the child never got to live with them.

The blue alien sighed softly before going to another section of the pod, pressing a button that he found there. He nearly fell over backwards at the sight of a large animal that was splashed across the screen in front of him. It had large teeth and vaguely resembled a vicious black dinosaur. There was a caption that labeled it as one of the many species that also lived on the planet. He spent the rest of the time just staring at various images of some of the wildlife that had shared a home with his people. He nearly laughed aloud at the realization that the black dinosaur things were used as what looked like a key player in a game. His world was strange.

The vast amount of information contained in the pod was something he couldn't quite grasp, but he was learning to accept that it was nearly bottomless in its information. But the more he learned the more he found that really didn't know anything. It was almost disheartening. But there was so much more to learn that he couldn't be sad for long. Then he found something else. It was almost hidden amongst the other buttons, recessed and hard to push even with his long and thin fingers.

Finally he managed it and watched as his father appeared on the screen, looking around him worriedly before focusing his attention at whatever it was that was recording him. He sighed. "My son, I wanted to make sure you knew the whole story, all of it. My wife…I love her so, but she does not know. I couldn't bring myself to tell her. She doesn't know the full story."

The look on the blue face was equal parts self-disgusted and sad, misery reflected in his eyes. "I did build a device that can create a black hole, but that is not all that it does. It also, theoretically, mind, but my theories often prove correct, but it also could in fact go through the black hole. I am sure you have caught the fact that it would have to be operated by someone…my son, I was willing to kill everyone and pilot it alone."

He laughed then, a bitter laugh, Megamind's eyes widened, confusion causing his eyebrows to pinch together. "But I changed my mind, not just because of your mother but because I realized something. I no more deserved to live than they deserved to die. The fact sickened my heart because we consistently fought and struggled. Our enemy was underhand and cruel, our people reacted in kind. But we never, never sent our children to fight our enemy." Megamind blinked, an expression of shock clouding his features as he considered the implications. "One of the reasons was simple; physically we were no match for them. Any child sent out would have been brutally…murdered. Or brainwashed, but we don't believe that they had the ability to brainwash. They were often too concerned with their physical powers and enhanced abilities.

"You heard me say children, and I am sure you are wondering about that. You must understand that they weren't _technically_ children. They were, most often they were infants, but they had a single purpose. Destroy. They were clones of their own infants, of their own people, placed into pods and sent to our planet. They would develop and mature quicker. Their powers were the first to be perfected, but because they were infants most of us could not bear to hurt them. In some cases they were successfully found and raised as our own, in others… The stories do not need repeating.

"But I am sure you now know how dire our situation was. When they would literally do this to their own children… The worst part of it is they did not invent the technology that they used to clone their children. No, we gave it to them. Or, rather, a few members of our species gave it to them. They considered our side the losing side, they needed, they wanted to live, and they were willing to do anything to live, including giving the enemy technology.

"But the fact remains that our enemy is cruel. They believed it to be something of a war that needed to be done, for our differences were great. I do not know if there were other reasons. Some technology and records have been lost and I do not know all about the enemy. My son, because someone has stolen my device the worlds will be lost to darkness and you shall be all that is left of our war.

"I do not know who it is that has stolen the device, but I am certain that it will be used soon. When it does I can only hope that the pod will be ready to transport you to safety with all the information you need." His father sighed wearily.

"I realize that all this time our information we have given to you about the enemy is sparse. You do not know what they can do, or even what they look like, and I must confess to hoping that you never do. But I am aware that this hope is a false one. The device needs an operator. Someone who can pilot the craft into position and out again. It is likely, no, it is _certain_, that you will encounter the person again.

"I wish I had more to give you than what I do…but it has been difficult to even get close to legitimately being able to place them, let alone figure out how to stop them. But this is our enemy. This is his face."

Megamind blinked at the picture that took over the screen, his eyes eating the image up with curiosity, which soon fell into confusion, and then to horror.

"His name is Metrian. He is the leader of the enemy race and he is willing and able to destroy us all."  
…

Mark stared at the pod in front of him, taking a deep breath before pressing a single button on it. The click that followed signaled the opening of the hatch. He examined it quietly, leaning forward to it and beginning to fiddle with the interior of it.

A moment later there was a click as it snapped open, unfolding into something very much like a computer in design. He examined it quietly, looking at the numbers that slowly counted down to something. He only wished that the numbers went slower. With a sigh he clicked a few buttons, banishing the numbers and replacing them with a regular display and a symbol that he rolled his eyes at. Two arms were holding something that vaguely resembled a hammer aloft between them. One was masculine, the other feminine, the both of them were well defined and strong. The symbol for the fight. The symbol of his people.

It was an image that burned into his brain even as he pressed a button that took him away from the image. The immediate sight of the face before him made him sigh. He really couldn't understand what was in the pod. A part of him never would, while the rest of his blood sang with the knowledge that he was part of such a warrior race. _He wasn't just a part_, something in his mind whispered, _he was the head._  
….

Megamind stared at the face before him with eyes that were disbelieving. Mark was before him, wearing a proud look that was equal parts stern and judgmental. He was older, his hair had more silver in it, but there was no doubt that it had been that boy, that man that he had spent so long fighting. Beside him was a woman, her beauty rivaling anyone he had ever seen, but so did the malice and insanity in her silver eyes.

"Our enemy is twofold, and while Metrian rules, what we think is his Queen is there beside him, ready to obey. I do not know which one has the device, but this is what it is, and this is what it does." His father replaced the image shortly, only to be replaced once again by a virtual diagram depicting a large metal ship that looked vaguely like a pill. As he watched it shot a beam from its nose, the beam warping space in front of it to turn into a vortex that began sucking everything in it. The ship was unaffected. It merely passed straight through it, calculations running along the side depicting what it was made of and precisely how it worked.

"Whoever is in that device will have survived. They will return. My son, _you must be ready_." His father's eyes were urgent, his expression fixed. "We know this about all of them, they have the power of flight, impossible strength, laser vision, and their skin is impenetrable. They also are in possession of the ability to move faster than time itself." He sighed then, looking at the ground as he seemed to be bolstering himself against the memories. "They have desecrated us." And there the clip stopped.

Megamind hunched forward slightly, expression holding sadness, that slowly shifted into rising anger as he stood upright, one person on his mind.

He stalked out of the room, cape billowing out behind him, his fingers clenched tightly. Minion watched him go with sad brown eyes, knowing what his master was going to do, and quite willing to let him get it out of his system. Megamind hesitated for a moment before entering the invisible car, roaring out of the base and directly to the hillside where the school resided.

He arrived opening the car door and throwing the school doors open, walking into the underground sanctum without seeing anything. His lip was curling and his eyes were spitting sparks. But even with how angry he was, he still halted at the sight of Mark looking at what was immediately recognizable as alien technology. It was the pod that Mark had arrived in, the superhero turning around to face the blue alien with a look of shock on his face. The shock changed to confusion, only to melt away again as a blue fist connected with his jaw, sending his head snapping back.

"You knew?" Megamind shouted out, his eyes reflecting fury. "You knew all this time that I…that you…" He lashed out again, the former superhero backing away, not doing much to deflect or even avoid the blows that rained on him, understanding the alien's anger. They didn't hurt. Around they went, fists constantly connecting with flesh, the bony fingers turning purple with bruising. But they never stopped until finally Megamind merely wore himself out.

"But I don't understand, why would you choose to destroy us?" Syx finally asked, unable to muster up the energy to hit him again. "Why would you do such a thing?"

"I…I don't know." Mark said softly, looking at the ground. "I'm not the ruler of my people, well…yes I am, but I'm not. I'm, dammit, I'm a clone! I'm not the ruler. Whatever reasons he, I had are lost to me." He laughed then, bitterly, sighing.

"But…"

"Look, I'm sorry; I don't know the answers any more than you do. And I'm sorry for that. I really truly am." He ran a hand across his face, then focused his attention on the blue alien in front of him. "I know what I was, I know that our races were enemies, and I get that, but I'm sorry we ever had to be. When I first met you…well, I had recently found this thing. It's filled with what I now realize is nothing but propaganda and hate mongering." He touched the pod gently, Megamind sinking into the couch as he watched the humanoid alien in front of him. "It described your race as rotten to the core and when I actually saw you, I wanted nothing more than to make sure you knew that I was on to you and your tricks. The fact that you came from a prison was further proof of that. Before that, well…I am a part of that race all the same; competitiveness is as much a part of us as good hair."

Megamind scoffed, but listened closely anyway.

"Look, I'm sorry, I really truly am. I didn't know any better and it wasn't until later, when I actually thought about it that I realized that you really were someone that was forced into the role you were playing. It wasn't your choice. And that's partly my fault. But that's in the past, I saw your potential to be a hero, to be something great, so I let you. That was my other reason for faking my death and not helping you that time with Titan. I knew that I wasn't meant to be the hero. That has always been your job. You've always been nicer than I was. Even with your baby seal leather boots." He let out something resembling a laugh and fell silent.

Mark sank into the chair across from the blue alien, ignoring the green eyes that stared at him in nothing but shock and bemusement. "But…I thought…"

"Megamind, Syx, I was wrong. As I grew up here I learned that more and more of what was in that pod was just lies. Lies to keep the clone on his course, so he couldn't veer away and do something against them, but it's too late, I know the truth. Your fish told me the truth a long time ago. Don't be mad at him either, it was his duty as your guardian among other things. He didn't want to disobey you or go behind your back. It just turned out like that."

"Why wouldn't he tell me?"

"I'm guessing it has to do with your parents."

Megamind nodded softly, falling silent once again, mind reeling with the revealed information and feeling emotionally and physically drained. "I miss them."

Mark didn't reply. There wasn't anything to say.

A moment later a shrill beeping began coming from the pod, the two of them turning to regard it quizzically, before Mark stood up straight, panic in his motions. "Syx, I need you to run."

"What?"

"Get out of here, now, please, just hurry."

"But I don't understand, why should I…?" his voice trailed off, only to be lifted up bodily by Mark and shoved towards the door.

"Go!" The urgency and fear in Mark's face and body language caught up to the blue alien and he turned to run. Before he did fully, Mark grasped his arm, turned him around and looked him directly in the eye.

"No matter what happens, I want you to know this: I was glad to have you as my friend." With that, Megamind looked at him quizzically before being shoved away, complying with the suggestion by running as fast as he could out of the lair, hopping into his car, and driving away.

Mark looked up at the ceiling, his super hearing attuned to the car as it drove away. He took a deep breath when it was gone before heading up himself; flying straight up into the air, his eyes examined the skies for a sign of what he knew lurked just beyond.

He would do what he could to delay the inevitable; the rest would be up to Megamind.  
...

_Explanation: As I was watching the movie I noticed just how...old Metro Man seemed to be. It was like he was having a midlife crisis in what had to have been his later twenties. I didn't think that really fit, especially when compared to Megamind, so, I began wondering. Everyone says that men can have gray hair in their twenties due to stress, but there were other little wrinkles and things that made me finally go, okay, you seem older than you should be... This was my general brainstorm. That was the start of an idea. That was the start of a story._


End file.
